I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

its brilliant , you should go there and stay there,

This might help, but watch out, as they have monkeys also.............https://www.william-russell.com/blog/expat-guide-moving-living-singapore/.

Its perfect cross Thailand off your list and go there.

47 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

Rooms are 4 to 5x the price.

Singapore is very nice but pricey. Love the Arboretum.

Why not go down there on an extended holiday, have a good look around and find out for yourself instead of relying on the opinions of people who have no idea of your likes and dislikes.

1 hour ago, Harrisfan said:

Rooms are 4 to 5x the price.

Rooms are 4 to 5x the price of what?

As part of your "research" there spit some chewing gum on the sidewalk.

3 hours ago, scottiejohn said:

Why not go down there on an extended holiday, have a good look around and find out for yourself instead of relying on the opinions of people who have no idea of your likes and dislikes.

,might be time to contribute back to the other "Pattaya" forum you contribute in ,

with your same name you use here, maybe change it to scottiebrian

You do seem like an "addict"

I'm sure the owner company there are desperate for members

13 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

Stay at the Marina Bay Sands.

It's very expensive and very safe.

Great place but very expensive to live full time from what I have seen .

17 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

Singapore is very small, you can drive across it in 45 mins.

Its very safe, but also very expensive.

It can get boring living there, but it is close to Thailand!

One of the reasons why you never hear about Singapore as an expat destination is because it's spectacularly overpriced, like many other destinations that would not appeal to expats, unless they are quite wealthy.

If I had the kind of money required to live in Singapore I'd probably rather live in Monaco, or Sardinia or a number of other destinations that had a bit more color and flavor, which in my opinion Singapore doesn't.

Singapore is often compared with Hong Kong. Both compete for the most expensive places in the world for expats to live. Most Singaporeans I know who have also lived & worked in Hong Kong prefer Hong Kong as a place to live; more colourful nightlife, better hiking and exercise options, excellent travel links (Singapore is great too), better public transport, a better range of weather and less oppressive laws.

No doubt that Singapore is a very safe place; likely in the top 10 safest cities in the world. Hong Kong has more of an edge, but is still massively safer than 'western' cities.

Singapore probably gets more international-class music events, but Hong Kong gets more international sports events. There are plenty of great music bars in HK, can't comment on SG.

Running is a bit better in HK due to cooler winter months, cycling isn't as great in HK due to the lack of cycle lanes and dodgy driving, but there are decent hills to cycle up if you can do it in the early morning.

As other have suggested a few weeks in each if you can will help you decide.

Singapore claims of being a very rich society ... but the vast majority of people there i can interacted with really were struggling, like most other societies.

GDP is not a worthwhile way to indiciate how well the population is, most likely wealth inequality.

I lived in Singapore for over twenty years, and I can assure you it is incredibly safe.

However, it's also incredibly expensive. My rather cramped two bedroom apartment now costs $4,500 - $5, 000 a month, which is not good value IMHO.

There are limited options to bring down your cost of living if necessary, but that generally requires you to share space with others or look for a cheaper HDB apartment which normally doesn't offer all the luxuries of condos. Even then, the prices for HDB apartments would likely be 2/3 of the regular condo market, so you'll need deep pockets to sustain a decent life there.

19 hours ago, scottiejohn said:

Rooms are 4 to 5x the price of what?

Of Thailand obviously where he normally goes.

Singapore ? it's totally trash ....

21 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

Try Siem Reap. Its got the temples and $1 beers.

Suggest you research your Visa Options 1st as unless you plan on working & then going down the PR route (Almost impossible if your're > 50) then you'll need to look at the Global Investor Programme - https://www.edb.gov.sg/en/incentives-and-programmes/global-investor-programme.html

FWIW I lived there for 12 years and loved the place but it is so small that after a few years I found myself travelling elsewhere most weekends (rented a Condo in Bangkok so used to visit it every other weekend)

Re: costs, it's much cheaper than the UK if you're working as the savings from only paying 12-15% tax (IIRC UK is 45% + 11% NI) more than offset things like additional housing costs.

Great place to visit, not a great place to retire to unless you are seriously rich.

21 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Tell me about Singapore

It's pricey, but I love the joint.

I like their discipline, corporal punishment is the norm. I heard it's a canning offence for Scammers 👍

11 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

It's pricey, but I love the joint.

I like their discipline, corporal punishment is the norm. I heard it's a canning offence for Scammers 👍

What's Singapore like compared to WADEYE Northern territory?

21 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

I'm still researching retirement destinations

I have only stopped in transit thru Singapore

Is there any expats retired there ?

Is the lifestyles nice if I want to live in the city ?

Is it safe to walk at night in parks ?

Singapore is a great place, if you can afford it, the living costs are much higher than Thailand. I've enjoyed my stays in Singapore, but I can probably not afford to live there permanently.

Singapore seems to be very safe – and extremely clean – and green, as the whole city state is like one huge garden; the official slogans is: "Let's make Singapore our garden". My photos below show the motor-highway through Singapore (upper) and what it's like after crossing the border into Jahor in Malaysia (lower)...

A view – snapped from the cable car to Sentosa Island – with an inserter zoom to the a pair of the towers' roof-top gardens. Many of the newer building in Singapore have green roof-tops...

Night view from Singapore park – note the difference from amazing Thailand: The "Feed Me"-garbage bin, they are everywhere, the is litterally no litter in streets or parks anywhere, very high punishemnt if you drop your litter anywhere else than in the numerous bins...

Try to take a stop in Singapore for a few days and explore the city by yourself – don't forget to get a "Singapor Sling" at iconic Raffles Hotel. You can fine excellent accommodation packages – book in advance, it might be difficult to just arrive and seek a hotel upon arrival – for example find a package on Sentosa island, which can include luxury hotel, free monarail rides on the island and to the mainland, and even tickets to some must visit attractions like the World's largest seawater aquarium and Universal Studios – packes have been affordable when I visited Singapore. Photo is half Sentosa Island viewed from one of the cable car-lines – some of the 5-star hotels in front with the monorail line (you can just spot a blue train in middle of image) and Universal right behind, golf-lane, beaches and appartments, presumably for for wealthy retirees, in the back...

According to Google-seacrhing, there is no "retirement visa", while foreign (wealthy) retirees use PR (permanent residency) – which can be obtained of you are matrried to a Singaporian, or having a significant professional work history in Singapore prior to retirement – or high-investment schemes like the Global Investor Programme (GIP), which requires at least $10 million SGD investment.

Expect livings costs from around $5,000 SGD per month, including rent.

Google also says that "many retirees choose neighboring countries with dedicated, lower-cost retirement visas, such as Malaysia or Thailand."

A very safe, small, sterile, expensive,boring city.

20 hours ago, Oliver Holzerfilled said:

As part of your "research" there spit some chewing gum on the sidewalk.

that's actually a good suggestion for him, he could also try writing his name on a couple of walls in spray-paint and if he needs to take a leak he should do it in a lift,

If you read this post georgina please bear this advice in mind , give it a go and be sure to report back

Costs a bloody fortune.

Worked there some years back and visited again last year for the Rugby Sevens.

If you have got the budget then fine but it is very expensive compared to other Asian destinations.

🍻

Clean and safe.
Many people are telling you its very expensive.
Accomodation extremely so.
Food can be very expensive at restaurants, but you can find cheaper places to go, and there are the hawker food centers .
Public transport cheap and the network is extensive.

If you like a drink of alcohol , prepared to be gobsmacked. Most expensive place i know for alcohol. Very high tax.
I found that Beers in normal bar/pub at happy hour are as expensive as in a 5 star hotel in the middle east.

The airport alone is worth a visit. Everything that Suvarnabhumi could have been if half the development budget hadn't gone missing!

Singapore is very clean and orderly. I took my wife there for a few days and she suffered from culture shock. Couldn't believe that traffic stopped for pedestrians!

It is very expensive though but food in the hawker centres is very affordable and hygiene standards are very high. Hotel accommodation is probably 4X Thai prices - but can be much higher, depending on where you stay.

The Long Bar at Raffles is an experience not to be missed - and yes, you do throw the peanut shells on the floor, as per tradition. Genuine Singapore Sling cocktails there, of course. Freshly mixed - not out of a can.

Sentosa Island is also worth a visit. There was a cable car linking it to the main island, when we were there, and a little train that ran right round the island. I'm not sure if either of these still exist now.

I think that retiring there would need significant money. Great for a few days though.

This place has zero character, very similar to DXB.

Too heavily regulated for me.

It's very safe tho and as others have said incredibly expensive.